Golovkin Poised to Become Elected International Boxing President, To Steer Sport Toward Olympic Games in LA 2028
Former world middleweight champion Golovkin will be chosen as the head of World Boxing and lead the sport as it prepares for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
Golovkin, who earned a silver medal in the 2004 Athens Games and achieved the most world title defences in the history of the middleweight division, is the only presidential candidate endorsed by the sport’s autonomous selection committee for the upcoming vote. Consequently, he will take charge of the boxing governing body, which was established as the authority for amateur Olympic boxing recently.
That role was previously occupied by the former international boxing body, but it was expelled by the International Olympic Committee in 2023 following a series of controversies involving judging, corruption, and management.
In his manifesto, the boxing veteran, whose initial term runs until 2027, promised to restore trust in the sport and ensure boxing’s future in the Olympic lineup, starting with the Los Angeles 2028.
“During my amateur career, I earned with pride a silver medal at the Olympic Games Athens 2004, symbolizing Kazakhstan but the values of fair play and discipline that define Olympic boxing,” he stated. “As a professional, I won numerous world titles, known for my honesty, sportsmanship, and dedication to clean competition.
“I am dedicated to strengthening governance, ensuring financial transparency, developing technology to guarantee fair judging, and expanding opportunities for athletes of all genders in all corners of the globe.”
The IOC directly managed the boxing events at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and the Paris 2024 Games. However, after the recent Games were marred by disputes about sex eligibility, it said it needed a fresh collaborator by 2028.
In February, it granted recognition to the new boxing federation, which then hosted the 2025 global tournament in Liverpool. For that event, the organization introduced a mandatory sex screening test, to determine the eligibility of male and female athletes, a move that the Olympic committee is also considering for LA 2028.
